12 New Zealand missionaries out of contact after deadly cyclone

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Twelve missionaries are out of contact with mission leaders in New Zealand after a devastating cyclone smashed the island nation. At least one of the dozen missionaries is from Utah.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spokesman Sam Penrod told KSL TV that the missionaries are not missing or known to be injured or in danger, but after the cyclone swept through New Zealand, all the missionaries were able to be contacted except 10 in one city and two in another town.

The mission president is traveling to the missionaries with a satellite phone and it is hoped he is able to provide an update to the Church by later Wednesday night. Several communities are isolated because of telecommunication outages, floods and landslides.

Associated Press reported the cyclone created extensive flooding and landslides and is known to have killed four people. Cyclone Gabrielle hit the nation’s larger and more populated North Island on Monday. It is said to have brought more destruction to the country of 5 million people than any weather event in decades.

All those killed were in the North Island east coast Hawke’s Bay area. There is no information suggesting any missionary was in danger. It is not known what area the out-of-contact missionaries are in and being out of contact does not mean the missionaries are missing or unaccounted for.

A weather station in the Hawke’s Bay region recorded three times more rain over Monday night than usually falls for the entire month of February, authorities said.

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins told national and international reporters, it isn’t clear how many people nationwide are unaccounted for.

“We expect the vast majority of these people will be accounted for. However, there are several people missing for whom police do hold grave concerns,” Hipkins told reporters.

He said 1,111 people had been reported found by Wednesday, which would cancel out some of those reported uncontactable. Around 9,000 people have been forced from their homes since Monday.

Along with rescues, the government was prioritizing restoring power and telecommunications as well as delivering food, water and medicine to where it was needed, Hipkins said.

A naval ship left Auckland late Wednesday with drinking water for Hawke’s Bay communities and another ship would follow with vital supplies on Thursday.

A helicopter would drop bottled water for 3,000 people on Wednesday night.

Emergency responders planned to hold a barbecue for 3,000 people on Wednesday night at the Hawke’s Bay town of Wairoa.

“They’ll keep cooking into the night until either they run out of people to feed or they run out of food,” Hipkins said.

Water treatment equipment would also be delivered to Wairoa on Thursday, he said.

Around 160,000 properties on the North Island were without power on Wednesday, down from 225,000 on Tuesday, the government said.

British King Charles III’s sister Princess Anne visited New Zealand’s disaster management headquarters in the capital, Wellington, on Wednesday and praised the nation’s response. Her visit to New Zealand was scheduled before the cyclone struck.

🎥 WATCH: Four people, including a young child, have been confirmed dead after Cyclone Gabrielle carved a path of destruction across New Zealand. The death toll is likely to rise after 1,400 people were reported missing.

Read more here: https://t.co/mKifu90Sq9 pic.twitter.com/7vVGhyC1u6

— The Times and The Sunday Times (@thetimes) February 15, 2023

“My thoughts are with all New Zealanders whose homes or livelihoods have been affected by Cyclone Gabrielle,” she said in a statement.

“I admire the courage of the people of Aotearoa during this alarming and difficult time,” she said, using the country’s Māori-language name.

“You should all be proud of the resilience, strength and care for your communities you are showing in the face of adversity,” she added.

Auckland was swamped two weeks ago by a record-breaking storm that also killed four people.

A national emergency was declared Tuesday, enabling the government to support affected regions and provide additional resources. It is only the third national emergency ever declared.

The full journey of #CycloneGabrielle from formation near Queensland, Australia to extratropical cyclone near New Zealand. pic.twitter.com/DPnpz1ZG6i

— Zoom Earth (@zoom_earth) February 14, 2023